Airplane with supporting surfaces of variable area



I. MAKHONINE Dec. 5, 1933.

AIRPLANE WITH SUPPORTING SURFACES OF VARIABLE AREA Orig inal Filed Sept. 18,

1930 4 Sheets-Sheet l GNXXV AX vow km W F Dec. 5, 1933. MAKHONlNE 1,938,148

AIRPLANE WITH SUPPORTING SURFACES OF VARIABLE AREA Original Filed Sept. 18, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 I. MAKHONINE Dec. 5, 1933.

AIRPLANE WITH SUPPORTING SURFACES OF VARIABLE AREA Original Filed Sept. 18 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I. MAKHONINE Dec. 5, 1933.

AIRPLANE WITH SUPPORTING SURFACES OF VARIABLE AREA Original Filed Sept. 18, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Dec. 5, 1933 PATEN OFF ICE . 1,938,148 7 AIRPLANE WITH SUPPORTING sURFAcEs' F VARIABLE AREA Ivan Makhonine, Paris, France Application September 18, 1930, Serial No.

482,863, and in France September 24, 1929.

Renewed July 14, 1933 2 Claims.

My invention is an improvement in flying machines provided with wings allowing variation in flight of the area of the supporting surface; according to my invention the wings comprise a central stationary part inside which is secured a girder or cell and two movable lateral parts adapted to slide over the cell inside the stationary part preferably with the interposition of suitable rollers whereby said movable part may be retracted'for normal flight.

, A broken away part of the vertical front side of the cell allows a series of stays riveted to the opposite sides of the cell and ensuring a great rigidity therefor to be seen inside the cell.

Fig. 2 is a plan View at the same scale as Fig. 1 showing, through two broken away parts, the control mechanisms for the movable part of the wing and the manner in which this movable part is guided over the cell together with part of the assembly of stays reinforcing the cell.

Fig. 3 is a cross-section at a larger scale through AA at the end of the stationary part of the wing showing the rollers carried by the cell and on which the movable part of the wing lies. a

Fig. 3a is a continuation of Figure 3.

Figs. 4, 4a, 5, 5a, 6, 6a relate to a modification.

The body of the airplane is shown at 1, the stationary part of the wings at 2 and the movable part of these same wings at 3.

The stationary and movable parts of the wing forms a wing with a varying supporting surface.

The wing comprises (Figs. 1, 2 and 3) a stationary cell 4 solidly built and secured inside the aircraft to a suitable longitudinal partition 5 (Figs. 1 and 2).

This cell carries a first series of rollers with horizontal axes 6, 6, 6 (Figs. 1, 2, 3) distributed over its two vertical sides and adapted to further the sliding of the movable part of the Wing over the cell with which it is in contact only through the rollers and to resist the vertical stresses acting on this part of the wing through the four rails 7, 7, 7, '7 (Fig. 3) secured two by two to wooden girders 8, 8 (Figs. 2 and 3) rigidly fitted inside the movable part of the wing.

A second series of rollers with vertical axes 9, 9, 9 Fig. 1, also distributed over the two vertical sides of the cell is adapted like those of the first series, to further the sliding of the movable part of the wing over the cell and tom resist the horizontal stresses acting on this part of the wing through two rails 10, 10 (Fig. 3) secured to the wooden girders 8, 8.

The control devices used for controlling the movable part of the wing way be of any type. 6

A simple glance at the control mechanisms illustrated in Fig. 1 shows that by acting on the crank 11 in the direction of the arrow the movable part of the wing passes inside the stationary part as shown by the arrows f, f, f, f.,

A direction of rotation opposed to the arrow would cause the movable part of the wing to pass out of the stationary part thereof, the control belt of the movable part returning over the sheaves 12, 12 (Figs. 1 and 2) secured to a .7 suitable point of the stationary part of the wing.

An electric motor may be used for controlling the device disclosed heerinabove.

A modification is shown in Figs. i, 5, 6 wherein the stationary part of the wing is long and hai -M row, whereas the movable parts are adapted to extend transversely i. e. to the front and rear of the stationary part and to collapse telescopically inside the latter. Fig. 4 is a front view and Fig. 5 is a plan View of such an airplane.. the movable parts of the wing of which are shown spread out whereby the supporting surfaces are increased to the utmost. Fig. 6 is a cross-section of the same airplane with its movable parts half spread out.

In either device shown or in any device falling within the scope of appended claims, the movable parts of the wings may be actuated by hand or by a motor such as an electric motor which may be controlled by the speed indicator or by... a switch operated bythe pilot.

Although a form of execution has been described hereinabove in detail it should be well understood that the invention is not limited thereto as part or all the advantages resulting from the invention may be executed by means of other constructions within the scope of the invention.

The movable parts of the wing may be provided with longitudinal slots 13 (Fig. 2) which as is Well known further the taking oif and the landing, but hinder normal horizontal flight. With the arrangement shown when the airplane is in full flight, the slots are retracted with the movable parts of the wing inside the stationary to slide inside each end of the stationary part over the rollers on either side of the corresponding girder and means independent of the box girder for controlling the position of the movable end parts with reference to the stationary part. I

2. In an' airplane as claimed in claim 1 the provision of longitudinal slots in that portion of the movable end parts which is covered, when retracted, by the stationary part.

V IVAN MAKI-IONINE. 

